Economy in Brief

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that pending sales of existing single-family homes fell 1.2% last month and repeated the July drop that was unrevised. Sales remained slightly higher than the Q2 average but remained [...]

The job market may be on the mend.Initial claims for jobless insurance dropped a sharp 37,000 to 391,000,000 last week from 428,000 (revised from 423,000). The latest figure was the lowest since the first week of April and was far [...]

German export and import prices are each falling in August. Excluding petroleum, both export and import prices fell. But over three months export prices are rising and import prices are falling both with and without petroleum prices. [...]

In a another sign of a consumer that is hesitant to consume, chain store sales continue lethargic. Last week, they slipped 0.2% (+2.7% y/y) and added to the prior period's 1.2% drop. So far in September sales are down 1.2% from August [...]

Low interest rates continue to generate strength in the mortgage loan market. The total index of mortgage applications jumped 9.3% last week to 767.9 (March 16, 1990 = 100). That followed a 10.0% rise during the prior week which was [...]

New orders for durable goods slipped an expected 0.1% last month following a little-revised 4.1% jump during July. Last month's figure reflected strong crosscurrents amongst the components, certainly in the transportation sector where [...]

The chart speaks volumes but despite the god-zillions of words used in this verbiage trained economists will look at that chart and have significantly divergent views of what it means. Like the story of the blind men feeling different [...]

The recent volatility in the stock markets of the world, the prices of precious and industrial metals and the price of oil can be attributed, in large part, to the swings in the hopes and fears that the Euro Area debt crisis will or [...]